Wales captain Sam Warburton is not concerned as his Cardiff Blues deal enters its final season, saying he still has a year to decide his future.

Sam Warburton is back with his club after successfully leading the British and Irish Lions to Australia, and the matter of his contract has started to become a talking point.

The 24-year-old is far from flustered, though, saying only now is he ready to contemplate what lies ahead.

“I’ve still got 12 months, still a relatively long time, so I’ve got a whole season to make that decision,” the 24-year-old said.

“Because we’ve been away on the Lions tour, the full focus was with the Lions.

“Since I’ve come back I’ve pretty much laid low and spent some time with family.

“We’re going back into the Blues next week and then you can focus on the new season and your future.

“I guess that’s when negotiations may start, sometime in the new season.”

Sam Warburton’s situation is a mirror image of Leigh Halfpenny’s, with the Lions’ star man also entering his final year at Cardiff.

With other Wales players such as Jamie Roberts having headed to France, there are concerns Warburton could do the same, but he has hinted that home is where the heart is.

“There’s a lot of players in the same situation in the current Welsh squad and hopefully we can get the situation resolved and keep as many as we can in Wales,” he added.

On Monday, Warburton said he hops to have recovered from the hamstring injury that ended his British and Irish Lions tour in time to lead Wales in their autumn internationals.

Named as Lions’ captain, the flanker was injured during the second Test defeat to Australia but Warburton has confirmed he remains on course to return in the expected timeframe.

“The initial diagnosis was 12-16 weeks, I have been in doing rehab and we are on course for that,” he said.

“There have been no hiccups as yet, 16 weeks is the target, and all is going good so far.”

The 24-year-old accepts that it may be difficult for him to find his way back into the Blues’ line-up when he returns but wants to be involved in their Heineken Cup campaign, with Wales then facing South Africa at the Millennium Stadium on November 9.

“If I could get back sometime in October, that would be good,” he said.

“It will be difficult with the Blues to walk straight back into the side, obviously you have to work your way in, but Heineken Cup rugby is great to be involved in.